- 1). File the petition for divorce with the county clerk's office. This document will define the couple seeking a divorce and detail the grounds or reason for divorce.
- 2). Pay the filing fee. The filing fee will allow the divorce process to be set in motion. Without the filing fee, the clerk cannot record the case and forward it to the judge for ruling.
- 3). Wait 30 to 90 days. The time frame varies from state to state, but there is a waiting period from the time the petition is filed that must pass before the court will deliver the divorce decree.
- 4). Receive a hearing notice. This is the moment that the judge will pass his decision on the divorce case, allowing the divorce to be finalized.
- 5). Obtain the divorce decree. When the judge agrees that the divorce can pass, a divorce decree is issued and the marriage is officially dissolved.
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